Time for tall tales on television, September 6th

SIR- Your article about the increased viewing of television during the holy month of Ramadan raises a lot concerns for the potential long-term health consequences for Muslims in the Middle East.

As a physician studying the effects of prolonged fasting in people with diabetes during Ramadan, I found this article rather disturbing. The prevalence of diabetes in most Middle Eastern countries is very high (for example, Egypt has 5 million people with diabetes and many millions undiagnosed). The majority of these cases are linked to overweight individuals due to low levels of physical activity and a poor diet. We conducted a study in the area of Brent in London during Ramadan last year and found that the average Muslim with diabetes gains 1.5kg during this holy month. In addition, their diabetes control had worsened.

Ramadan is not just about fasting but about feasting too. The encouragement from the entertainment industry to create more couch potatoes (or couch bakhlawas) during Ramadan will potentially worsen health outcomes for most people, especially if they have diabetes. I hope the satellite channels will help by supporting more healthy lifestyle messages during prime time, particularly encouraging light exercises rather than sitting down to watch more TV programmes.

Dr Senan DevendraConsultant diabetologistBrent National Health Service Senior lecturer in MedicineImperial College London